A/N - Hey guys! Thanks so much for being patient with me on this chapter. I've actually been moving to a new house, which has been rather complicated to do during quarantine. BUT I think the chapter is worth the wait because it's basically a double chapter. (Double the wait, double the chapter. Cheers to that. I wasn't skimpy with your word count). Thanks so much for the continued support on the story. I'm still having fun posting and I hope ya'll are still enjoying the content!
—
Emily walked from her car with Lily and Grace as the three of them headed towards the soccer field. She handed them their water bottles and nudged them towards their team, wishing them good luck. She looked around, finally spotting her mother and headed in the other woman's direction towards the bleachers.
"Hey!" She called once she got close. Pam sipped her coffee and waved to her daughter. Coffee sounded amazing right now. She wondered why soccer games had to be so early in the morning. "I could use some of that right now." She noted to her mother.
Pam laughed. "I've been a sports parent for years. You'll learn the tricks."
Emily hoped so. If the girls stuck with this she'd have to get used to these Saturday morning games somehow. She usually didn't have the girls on Saturdays, but Mona was getting married this weekend and Alison had already gone to Philadelphia the previous evening for the rehearsal dinner. She and Hanna were probably up and getting into hair and make up by now. Emily couldn't wait to see her. Pam had agreed to keep the girls so that both Emily and Alison could go to the wedding. She was going to take them after the game and Emily planned to drive to Spencer and Toby's place after to get ready.
"Thanks again for taking them tonight," Emily smiled. She didn't even need to ask. When she mentioned the wedding about a month ago, Pam had just offered. She was literally Super-Grandma.
"Oh course! We're going to have a fun night! Are their bags in your car?"
"Yeah, do you want to just grab them after?" Emily asked. She didn't feel like trudging to the car and back all over again.
"Sure," Pam nodded. "So are you excited for Mona's wedding?"
She side eyed her mother. Pam knew that Emily had never been Mona's biggest fan. Emily had a lot of trouble trusting people after they broke her trust and when she found out that Mona had been tormenting them as A that had blown it in Emily's book. The situation with Alison going to jail for her murder had only deepened her distaste for the other girl. Their relationship had improved over the years due to Mona's close friendship with Hanna, sorting through the AD crisis together, and Alison's new relationship with her. But really the only reason that she was going to the wedding at all was because all of her friends would be there.
"It will be...good to have a night out." She settled for.
She was actually really excited for the night, but she tried to hold back from coming across that way. It would be nice to hang out with her friends alone without children around. She loved being a being a mom, but it was extremely rare for them to be able to all hang out like this anymore. It was a shame that Aria was still in Bolivia, but Aria had never been Mona's biggest fan either so Emily doubted that she cared much.
She also couldn't wait to see Alison get dressed up. She always thought that Alison shined anytime there was any event to go to. She could pull off classic retro looks, hot and steamy looks, and everything in between. Emily had almost passed out when she saw Alison for the first time on their own wedding day. That was probably the last time that they had been dressed up together. Emily pushed the thought away. The past was in the past. She was looking forward to their future. They had quietly decided to just get one hotel room tonight and so far none of their friends seemed to notice. She felt anxious, but excited for the day ahead.
Down in Philly, Alison was sitting with Hanna drinking a mimosa while she waited for her turn with the hairdresser.
"God, I love weddings," Hanna mused as the hairdresser curled a strand of her hair.
"So much so that you decided that you didn't want to have your own?" Alison joked to the other blonde. She knew that Hanna and Caleb had gotten married quickly because of the police issues during the AD debacle, but she had been surprised that they never had a formal wedding or reception later on.
"Why go through all of the trouble when you can just celebrate everyone else's?" She took a sip of her own mimosa. Alison made a mental note to make sure that Hanna didn't have more than her share before the wedding. The last thing Mona needed was for one of her bridesmaids to face plant during their entrance.
Alison felt her phone buzz in the pocket of her robe and pulled it out. It was a text from Emily. She'd texted her a few minutes ago asking how the twins' game went.
Pretty good. The response read. Grace scores two goals.
Alison smiled, proud of their daughter. And Lily? She asked.
Possibly afraid of the ball... Emily sent back with an emoji holding her hand over her face.
She's more of a lover. Like her mom. Alison knew that Emily would be rolling her eyes when she read that message, but she didn't care. Sure, Emily was just as much of a fighter as she was a lover, but only when she needed to defend the people that she cared about.
The text that she got back made her smile. I can wait to see you later.
Soon she responded with a little kissing emoji, and tucked her phone back in her pocket.
"What's got you all smiley?" She looked up and saw Hanna grilling her over her mimosa.
She quickly composed herself. "Emily said that the soccer game went well. Wish I didn't have to miss it." She scrunched her nose up.
Hanna went on to talk about how she wished that she would have signed Aidan up to play on the twins' team. Alison was trying to listen, but she kept thinking about tonight. When they talked about the wedding a few weeks back, Emily had asked her shyly if she wanted to share a hotel room. Mona had already booked one for Alison, so she invited Emily to just stay with her. They hadn't talked about what that meant yet. Alison wondered if tonight would be the night. Her make out sessions with Emily had gotten progressively more heated, but both of them had been holding back. She felt ready- her body certainly felt ready- but the two of them hadn't discussed sleeping together yet. She didn't want to rush things either, but it was hard when she was so excited and turned on by the woman that she was with. It didn't help that they had been together so many times before. Her body responded now exactly the way that it used to when they were together, and she really wanted to act on those desires. She wondered if Emily was in the same boat. If any of their recent encounters were any indication, she was pretty sure the brunette felt the same way. She hoped she did anyway. She thought that maybe they could talk about it tonight.
—
The wedding ceremony turned out beautifully. It was impressive that Mona had been able to plan such a beautiful wedding in Philadelphia all the way from Beacon Heights.
When Alison walked down the aisle during the entrance procession with one of the groomsmen, she searched the crowd for Emily almost immediately. She found the girl's dark eyes staring back and she almost stopped dead in her footsteps at how gorgeous she looked. She flashed the brunette a genuine smile as her heart did a single jumping jack in her chest and forced herself to look away. If she didn't she would continue to stare, and that might be odd considering there was a whole room full of people watching her.
Emily was standing with Spencer, Toby, and Caleb. She let her eyes linger on the blonde for as long as she could without being obvious as she walked down the aisle. She looked stunning. Her blonde hair was curled perfectly, and the dress that she had on clung to her skin in all the right places. Emily was mesmerized by the juxtaposition of the navy dress against her pale skin. Her breath hitched when she got her first look of the other girl, but she did her best to hide it. She was starting to realize that this whole 'date each other without telling anyone' thing wasn't as easy as she thought it would be. Alison was her girlfriend, and Emily wanted to be able to appreciate her in public without anyone thinking twice. She felt jealous of the groomsman walking next to her, arm looped through hers. She wanted him and everyone else to know that the blonde wasn't available.
Spencer nudged her at one point during the ceremony. "Hanna and Ali look really pretty."
She turned towards the other brunette and nodded, pressing her lips together. She tried to be conscious of her expressions, not wanting to seem too over eager, but both girls really did look great.
After the ceremony, she went with the other three directly to the hotel where the reception was being held. There was a cocktail hour in between the ceremony and reception for the guests while the wedding party took photos. She found herself feeling impatient. She wanted to be back in the same room with Alison.
Eventually, the wedding party was announced and they went through the traditional routine of events. Emily watched Alison walk in with her groomsman and dance with him for a single song. She couldn't help the little bit of jealousy pricking in her chest. She knew that it was silly to feel the way that she did, but she couldn't help it. She was craving some alone time with the blonde. Still though, Emily let herself enjoy the evening. She toasted champagne with everyone and ate cake. It was nice to relax with friends and have a fun night out.
Across the room, Alison was sitting at a different table with the wedding party trying to enjoy herself as well. It had been a great day so far and she was happy to celebrate Mona. If someone had told Alison six years ago that she would be celebrating Mona's Vanderwaal's wedding- let alone be one of the bridesmaids- she would have thought the idea was crazy, but here she was. Patching things up with Mona and the two of them learning to trust each other had really helped her understand the process of redemption and reconciliation. The progress of that relationship wasn't always linear, but overtime it had developed into something special. Alison used the memory of that for her expectations with Emily. There was so much love there that her body was constantly pushing for more, but she knew the reality of their history. They had both hurt each other in the past, and they had to make sure that they were rebuilding slowly to form the strongest relationship that they could.
She sipped her wine and listened to the beautiful cello music in the background. Her old student, Dylan Walker, was an amazing performer and had eagerly accepted to play at the wedding. Alison had always known that Dylan was talented, but she hadn't had many opportunities to hear him play before today.
She glanced across the room over to the table that Emily was seated at with Spencer, Toby, and Caleb. She watched them for a few minutes until the brunette turned and looked her way. The smile slipped onto her face before she could stop it. She missed the other girl and wished that she was seated at the table with them. Her eyes had gone to Emily almost immediately during the wedding ceremony and she couldn't get the image out of her head for the whole duration. The tight black dress that Emily had chosen looked just downright sexy on her. It accentuated her impossibly long legs and all that Alison could think was how she wanted to run her hands up and down them. Emily smiled back at her from the table, her face morphing into a sultry expression. It wasn't doing anything to help tame Alison's hormones.
Later, as Alison was walking down the hallway outside of the reception room in search of the restroom, she felt a mysterious arm loop around her waist and lightly pull her into a room. She spun around, ready to go into full defense mode, but to her relief she found Emily staring back at her. She looked around and realized that they were in the very bathroom that she had been looking for and it seemed like they were alone.
"Hey," she breathed and placed her hands on the brunette's waist to steady herself.
"Hi…" Emily returned. She slid her arms up Alison's back and let her fingers tickle the exposed skin at the top of her gown.
"Is it just us in here?" Alison asked? She looked around and it seemed empty. As far as bathrooms went, this one was actually fairly nice. It had marble sinks and classy two-toned wallpaper.
Emily was pretty sure that it was, she had taken a quick check of the area before poking her head out of the door when the blonde approached. She shrugged one shoulder and nodded.
Alison smiled and tilted her face up to give her a kiss. Emily let herself melt into it. She gripped the other girl's back a little bit tighter and walked them back into the largest stall, locking the door behind them.
"Did you plan this?" Alison asked before leaning back in to press their lips together again.
"Just good timing, I guess."
"You totally planned this," The blonde giggled again against her lips. They spent the next few moments getting lost in each other. Both of their hands roamed along the silk material of each other's dresses, against skin, through hair. Emily had been craving this for hours. She'd missed seeing her last night since they usually saw each other on Friday's, but the yearning had multiplied when she saw her for the first time today.
"You look amazing," Emily whispered against her lips.
Alison pulled back and gave her a dimpled grin. "Um, not as good as you." She ran her hands along Emily's sides, "You totally could have modeled this dress for me before tonight, you know…"
"I could say the same to you." Emily's eyes went up and down the navy material. She couldn't help but let them linger at the top of her chest. The dress was cut to allow just the tiniest amount of cleavage at the top. It was enticing. Emily wanted to see more.
"I prefer surprises," Alison smirked.
Emily laughed in return. She leaned in and pressed a kiss against the other girl's cheek before she found her way to Alison's jawline, trailing several more kisses down it until she reached her neck. The blonde let out a whine and tightened her grip around Emily. She moved her head and sought out her lips again. She opened her mouth slightly and slid her tongue out to meet the brunette's. The kiss was needy. Emily realized that she might not have been the only one sitting at dinner wanting some company.
As they continued to kiss, their hands roamed further, to more daring places. Emily let her hands travel north and rest against the bottom side of Alison's breasts, while Alison's palms went south, playing with the soft skin where Emily's dress met her thighs. Emily groaned against the other girl's lips at the feeling. The sensation was working its way through her body, and she was quickly losing time and space. Despite the fact that they were making out in the bathroom at a wedding reception, Emily just wanted more and more of the other girl.
Her hands wandered along the blonde's back and found the zipper of the gown. She started to run it down her back, letting her knuckles drag against Alison's spine.
The blonde felt dizzy. She was trying to keep a grip on herself, but between being tipsy from champagne toasts and feeling downright drunk from Emily's kisses, she felt herself slipping away. When Emily's hands started to slide under for now loose gown, she pulled from the kiss and took several steadying breaths. They had a whole night together, the bathroom wasn't the place to get carried away, even if she wanted to. They'd been in here now at least fifteen minutes. If she didn't stop things now, she wasn't sure what was going to happen. She put her arms on Emily's shoulders, gripping her gently. "We're taking things slow…" She took several more breaths. She hadn't realized until now just how out of breath she was. "Right?"
Emily dipped her head into the crook of her neck. She let out a little whine against the other girl's skin, but she knew she was right. She pulled back and let her dark eyes meet Alison's light eyes. "You're right."
"I don't want to stop," Alison confessed in a whisper.
"Neither do I, but you're right." Emily agreed. "Here, turn around."
Alison complied and Emily brought the zipper of her dress back up to where it belonged. She mentally told herself that she'd get to unzip it again later. Hopefully.
When Alison turned back to face her, Emily smiled and fixed several blonde ringlets that had fallen out of place. Her lips were slightly swollen, but other than that, her makeup hadn't smeared much. "You wanna head out first?" Emily asked.
Alison didn't want to leave, but she knew that they had been hiding for long enough. One of them had to make the first move to leave.
"See you out there?" Alison asked. She ran her hand down Emily's arm, past her wrist, and clasped her hand.
Emily squeezed it in return. She leaned in and gave her a delicate kiss, mumbling "mhm," against her lips.
Alison flashed one more smile to to the brunette and opened the door to head out. Emily watched her from where she was standing. God, she looked good.
—
Alison tried to fix her expression as she walked down the hallway back to the ballroom. She still felt hot and bothered and hoped that it wasn't totally obvious that she'd been getting it on in the bathroom. She spotted Spencer talking to Caitlin over by the bar and headed that way.
"Alison," Caitlin tilted her head and smiled. Caitlin was technically one of her former students, but since Alison had just been a TA at the time, they all called her by her first name. Caitlin had also been one of the students that was tortured by The Professor and Alison was glad to know that the girl was far from Beacon Heights and excelling in DC.
"Well look, it's Senator Hastings' new star staff member."
Caitlin let out a genuine laugh, "I don't think I'd go that far."
"Oh I would," Spencer piped in. "She always talks about what a great help you are. She keeps expecting me to send her another awesome intern to train, but I haven't found anyone quite as good."
"See," Alison said pointedly.
The three shared a laugh and continued chatting for a few moments. Caitlin and Spencer shared a lot of similarities, and it was interesting for Alison to see them interact. She knew them both pretty well, but had never seen the two of them in a room together. The banter between two women from overachieving families was both entertaining and nauseating.
She made an exit when they starting getting really far into the political weeds. She needed another drink anyway. While she was waiting for the bartender to pour her wine she heard a voice behind her.
"Ali," Taylor greeted.
Alison had known that it was a real possibility that the other girl would be here, but hadn't followed up with her. She knew how busy Taylor was and despite telling Alison that she would be at the wedding, it wouldn't have been surprising if she wound up missing it. It wasn't that Alison didn't want to see her, but the other woman's presence could complicate some things. She felt assured that she had put her past in Beacon Heights totally behind her when she said goodbye to Taylor four months prior. She knew that she'd have to update her on her current relationship with Emily.
At the other end of the ballroom, Emily was making her way back to the table to check her phone. She hoped that her mother wasn't having any trouble. She figured she could sneak away for a call in a little bit, once the celebration cooled down a little, but for now she wanted to make sure there were no missed calls.
She was also trying to cool herself down. She'd spent the last five minutes standing in front of the sink in the bathroom trying to take some calming breaths after her encounter with Alison. She'd gotten so worked up over finally seeing her earlier that she felt like she just had to be alone with her, even for just a few minutes. She hadn't meant for it to get as escalated as it had. They were both having a lot of trouble stopping lately once things started to get heavy. She was glad that Alison had brought them back to reality earlier, but she wondered where their night would take them. It was their first time spending a night together in the same bed without the twins under the same roof. She was getting a little bit nervous. They hadn't discussed if they would actually sleep together tonight. Emily wasn't 100% sure that they were ready yet, but if the bathroom was any indication, she wasn't sure if they could hold off anymore.
Luckily, she didn't have any missed notifications on her phone so it was safe to assume that the girls were doing well. As she was slipping it back into her bag, she felt the presence of someone approaching. She looked up and saw Hanna plop down into the chair next to her. She hadn't gotten to talk to her friend yet and was initially excited to see her.
"There you are. You look great, Han!" She smiled.
Hanna looked back at her with an unreadable expression. She had her eyes slightly narrowed and lips were pushed together in a smirk. She didn't say anything in return. She just stared at Emily with her fixed expression for a moment.
"What?" Emily asked.
"I was just going to say that I could have modeled my outfit for you too if you would have asked," Hanna told her with a raised brow.
Emily recognized the exchange almost immediately. "How did you...?"
"I was literally in the stall closest to the door. I got the hell out of there before I heard anything that would scar me for life." She shook her head in disbelief. "Did you seriously not check all of the stalls?"
Shit.
Emily's felt her heart drop down into her stomach. She hadn't actually opened each door, but she'd looked under the doors and hadn't seen anyone. Had she really missed that? She felt embarrassed for some reason. Hanna was her best friend, but this isn't the way that she would have chosen for her to find out. She hadn't really felt ready to tell people, partially because she was worried about impending scrutiny. She tried to steady her breathing. "I guess not..." she told Hanna.
The both stayed quiet for a beat. "How long has this been going on?" Hanna asked, her voice a little bit softer. She saw Emily's expression change. She wasn't trying to make her best friend feel bad, but she was pretty shocked at the revelation. It wasn't a total surprise that Emily and Alison were hooking up because, well, they were Emily and Alison… but she was surprised that Emily wouldn't say anything to her.
"Almost two months now I guess," Emily twisted her lips.
"And what is it exactly?"
Emily exhaled a long breath. "Do we have to talk about this now?
"Were we ever going to talk about it?" Hanna raised her voice slightly, "Or was this just going to stay a big secret?"
"I mean, it hopefully won't be a secret forever…" Emily said. She wanted to keep things between her and Alison just to themselves for now. She wanted to build something that was just them and not influenced by other people. She wanted to make sure that they'd be able to make it work. If she was being totally honest with herself, there was a part of her that was terrified that they wouldn't be able to make it work. If she had to live through the fallout of her relationship again, she wanted to do so privately, without hearing, 'I told you so' from anyone.
"So that wasn't just a slip... this is like serious?"
"We're trying to rebuild things. We're together," Emily confessed.
Hanna knew that it was probably hard for Emily to come out with all of this, but she still felt skeptical. "Are you sure this is a good idea, Em?"
Emily shook her head. "I knew that people would react this way. This is why I haven't said anything."
"Well do you blame me?" Hanna's voice raised slightly.
"I don't know, but I was at least hoping for a little support."
The blonde shook her head. Of course she supported Emily, but support didn't always mean just being a cheerleader. She'd seen these two crash and burn in the past and knew how painful the effects had been. She looked across the room at Alison standing by the bar with Taylor. She wouldn't break Alison's trust, but she also doubted that Emily knew about that. She wondered how much they'd really talked through things. After all of the developments in the last year, it seemed to Hanna like her friends were just diving in.
"Look, we're taking things slow," Emily told her. She took a breath. "But we both feel the same way. We want to be together… we want to be a family again."
"I thought you were set on moving on?"
Emily shook her head. "I can't, Han. Not when I still feel this strongly about her." A beat passed and Emily shrugged, not sure what else she could say. "I love her."
Hanna nodded. She knew that Emily loved Alison and she knew that Alison loved Emily. That part wasn't up for debate. It wasn't a lack of love that had broken them up the last time. "Sometimes love isn't enough, Emily." She told her seriously. She knew that her friends had both worked hard to try to improve themselves the last year. She just didn't know if she could watch them both get hurt again, especially after the way that she'd seen them rebuild their family. "I mean are you even thinking about your daughters and how this would affect them if things don't work out?"
"Of course I'm thinking about them." She stressed with a blazing gaze.
Hanna's words stabbed at her a little. She wasn't upset with Hanna. The blonde wouldn't be her best friend if she didn't give her honest feedback. It hurt Emily because Hanna was relaying outlook the very fears that Emily herself had. Things were going well now. They were in love. But… hadn't they been in love before? They didn't get divorced because they fell out of love. It scared her to think that they could fall apart again, but she was trusting herself to trust their relationship. Maybe it was a blind leap of faith, but she had to take it.
"That's why we're taking things slow," Emily continued, lowering her voice. "We're trying to do this right and make sure that it lasts. We haven't slept together, we haven't told anyone, we haven't changed our schedule. We're working on our relationship together, and we're trying to keep other people out of it, including Lily and Grace. If it doesn't work out, then we'll find a way to move on, but we both want to try."
That was all there was to it. If it didn't work out, of course Emily would be crushed, but she wasn't happy living without Alison either. If they didn't try now, they would always wonder 'what if' and that wasn't something that Emily was willing to do.
"I want this to work for you, Em, I really do." Hanna's blue eyes bore into Emily. "But you'd better make sure that you know what you're getting yourself in to."
Emily nodded. She took a sip of her drink. She didn't want to let Hanna's words add on to her current insecurities, but she knew that her friend had a point. She glanced across the room at Alison, wishing that she could talk to her. She was talking to someone that Emily didn't recognize, so it would have to wait.
Across the room, Alison tried to navigate her own conversation. "I didn't see you earlier," she told Taylor.
She'd been pretty focused on Emily, but she didn't see Taylor anytime that she'd scanned the crowd. She noticed most people from the Beacon Heights community sitting together and the blonde hadn't been among them.
"I'm keeping a low profile," Taylor smirked.
Alison studied her, trying to get a read on her. They hadn't really spoken since the bachelorette party. "Did you have a good Summer?" She asked.
"I did. It was busy, but good." She smiled, "It was not quite as exciting as yours looked though, Miss South of the Boarder."
Alison nodded with a laugh, "It was definitely a change of pace. I had a really good time visiting my brother."
"Well you deserved a little vacation." Taylor smiled again, this time a little softer. She reached out and touched Alison's bare shoulder lightly with her fingertips. Alison shivered at the feeling. It felt scary to be this close to Taylor again. She'd turned the page in her mind months ago. As a matter of a fact, Alison was on a whole different book now.
"How are your daughters?" Taylor asked, blue eyes shimmering curiously.
"Really good," Alison pushed a smile onto her face and added, "They're with Emily's Mom tonight."
Taylor's brows knitted together in thought. "I thought I recognized her here. So it's... Moms Night Out?"
"Yeah," Alison gave a brief laugh. "About that…" She settled her face a little more serious. Taylor watched her. She knew that the other blonde could read her well, and she had been doing the same with her. It seemed like Taylor had an idea of what she was going to say. "We're trying to… work things out actually."
She waited for Taylor to react. The other girl studied her for a moment and let her lips slowly curl into a smile. "I figured as much."
Alison furrowed her brows and folded her arms, "How?"
"I know how important your family is to you and..." Taylor shrugged a single shoulder, keeping her gaze fixed on Alison's face, "I knew that you still loved her."
Alison raised her eyebrows. She wasn't aware that her love for Emily had been that obvious to other people. She tried to keep how badly she was hurting under wraps in Beacon Heights because there was so much other drama going on.
She eyed Taylor. The other blonde didn't seem too upset or bitter. Still though, she wanted to double check. "Is this weird for you?"
"No," Taylor shook her head. She had a soft expression, and Alison knew that her response was genuine. "I want you to be happy, Ali."
It brought a relief to Alison that she didn't know she needed. She smiled at the other girl and reached for her arm. She squeezed it briefly, in an expression of gratitude. Taylor's reaction wouldn't have changed her course as far as pursuing Emily, but she appreciated the approval nonetheless.
"Was it really that obvious that I still had feelings for her?" Alison asked with a little smile.
"We had our moment. But yeah, it was." Taylor confirmed. Alison felt her cheeks heat up. She hoped that it hadn't been obvious to absolutely everyone. It probably wasn't, though, she and Taylor just had an intimate connection. The other girl always seemed to have a good idea of where her head was at.
"Plus," Taylor continued and nodded her head to their left, "Hanna is sitting over there with her and dishing out some looks…"
Alison snapped her head in the direction that Taylor had referenced. She noticed Hanna and Emily sitting together at the table. Hanna had a frustrated expression, while Emily just looked downright uncomfortable. Had Hanna said something to Emily about the bachelorette party? Alison's heart sped up. Hanna had told her that she would keep it between them, but that didn't mean that Alison had totally trusted her with the information.
She had debated saying something to Emily about Taylor prior to the wedding, but had decided to wait in case the other girl didn't show. She personally didn't want to know about any of Emily's ex's, but she knew that the brunette was a little bit different. She didn't like to be the last one to know anything. She inwardly kicked herself. Emily's expression didn't look good from where Alison was standing.
"Hey you two," Ava Jalali walked up and entered the conversation, interrupting Alison's thoughts. She had seen Ava around and had meant to go up and say hello earlier. She was a little bit frustrated that her former student had picked now of all times, when Alison was internally panicking, to come up and make her presence known.
"Hi Ava," Taylor smiled genuinely. Taylor's little brother, Nolan, was dating Ava at the time he had been killed. Taylor had a soft spot for the dark haired girl.
"Hate to interrupt, but Alison, you did promise that you'd introduce me to your designer friend…" Ava was an aspiring fashion designer and Alison had told her several times that Hanna would be a good person to connect with if she was serious about pursuing her dreams.
Taylor seemed to pick up on what Ava was asking for and excused herself. "You two go, I have a few people that I should probably say hello to."
Ava looked back at her expectantly. Alison glanced over at Hanna and Emily again. It looked like whatever was going on had deescalated some, but both girls were still looking at each other with serious expressions. Maybe Ava's timing wasn't so terrible after all. It would be a good excuse to go over there and get a feel for what was going on. She really hoped that Hanna hadn't beat her to the punch in explaining to Emily who Taylor was.
"Sure, come on, "Alison motioned, "She's over here."
Emily looked up and noticed Alison walking their way alongside of a younger girl with straight dark hair. She could have used a few minute to herself because her head was kind of spinning, but she was happy to see her despite the conversation with Hanna. She trusted that Hanna had her best interests at heart, but it had really brought down her mood. She perked up her expression as the blonde got close.
"Ali," Hanna greeted.
"Hey guys…" Alison took in the scene. It seemed like they had put their conversation aside due to her presence which further worried her.
"Ava, these are my friends, Hanna and Emily." She figured that Ava might know who Emily was, but hoped she'd keep that to herself. The three of them exchanged hellos and Alison continued. "Hanna, Ava is looking to break into the fashion world. She just did an internship at a fashion house in Milan this past summer."
Hanna's brows lifted in approval. "Which one?" She asked.
Ava took the opportunity and excitedly started to talk to Hanna about her internship and her aspirations now that she had graduated from BHU.
It all sounded foreign to Emily and she side eyed Alison with a half smile.
"Want to walk?" Alison asked her.
Emily glanced back at Hanna and Alison's student. She literally had no idea what they were talking about and was actually pretty anxious to get away from Hanna. She wasn't mad, but she needed space.
They walked to a less populated part of the room and surveyed the crowd.
"Everything okay?" Alison asked, trying to break the ice. Emily was being a little quiet and it made her feel unsettled.
Emily raked her hand through her hair. She really didn't want to tell Alison that Hanna had essentially caught them making out in the bathroom. That would only bring Alison down the same way that it had done to her. She had felt really happy and excited after their encounter and the news had only deflated her. She didn't want the blonde to feel the same way.
"Yeah, I'm okay. Missing the girls a little." It wasn't a complete lie. Though she was excited for the night out, it didn't mean that she could just turn off being a Mom.
"I know…" Alison puffed her lips out. She missed them too. She hadn't seen them since Wednesday and would normally have seen them yesterday had she not been at the rehearsal.
"This is really nice, though. It's fun to see all of the people that you and Mona knew in Oregon."
Alison eyes the brunette, trying to figure out if there was anything behind the comment. She really didn't know for sure if Hanna had said anything to Emily about Taylor or not, but it was best to get in front of it in case Emily did find out somehow.
"There's something you should know..."
Emily met her gaze curiously. Alison had opened up a lot to her in the last year about her time in Oregon. She knew the ups, certainly the downs, her favorite coffee shop, her best students. She sensed something new by the blonde's tone, however.
"I probably should have said something before... I just didn't know the final guest list for sure and honestly kind of forgot, but... there's someone here that I kind of..."
Emily pinched her brows. It was clear where Alison was going with this, but it also surprised her. "Dated?" She asked. She hadn't really thought that Alison had been with anyone in Oregon. None of their friends had said anything and the blonde certainly hadn't mentioned this before.
Alison pushed her lips together and nodded. Emily blinked a few times, feeling herself deflating all over again.
"Who?" Emily asked before she could stop herself. She really hoped that it wasn't that damn groomsman that Alison had done her entrance with. She'd already felt annoyed watching, she didn't want another reason to feel that way.
"Um..." Alison looked a little uncomfortable. She tilted her head to another corner of the room where a blonde haired girl was talking to two guys in suits that Emily didn't recognize. "Over there..."
"Which one?" Emily squinted in the direction of the people. It felt odd to ask and she wasn't exactly sure why she wanted to know, but for some reason she did.
The question confused Alison. She thought it was obvious, but she answered anyway. "The blonde."
"Ali, both of those guys have dark hair."
Alison felt herself push her lips together tightly. Well this was awkward. She understood why Emily might automatically assume it was one of the guys, but still. "Right... it's the girl actually."
Emily's brows shot up in surprise. She realized that she hadn't even considered that. As far as she had known, she was the only woman that Alison had ever been with. They'd had a lot of conversations about it in the past between them, some not so pleasant. Alison didn't want to define herself and Emily didn't ask her to, but her the question of her attractions had always made Emily curious and sometimes a little uneasy. This new information intrigued her. There was a tiny part of her that was proud of Alison, but it was short lived. She felt the jealousy start to rise up as she realized that she'd just seen Alison with that girl.
"So the girl that you were just talking to a few minutes ago?" Emily raised a brow.
Alison grimaced. Yeah, that one. "I didn't actually realize that she was here. I mean she told me when I saw her at the bachelorette party that she would be, but we haven't really spoken since then so-"
"She was in New York with you guys?" Emily interrupted. She watched as a blush swept across Alison's face. She didn't need to ask any more questions. She was able to put the pieces together in her head. The realization made her feel a little sour. She knew that they hadn't been together then, but still. She was way too invested now to want to picture her with anyone else.
"Sorry, I know it's a little weird," Alison amended. "I just wanted to tell you in case anything came up for some reason."
Emily wasn't mad, she just felt a little frustrated. And not with the blonde. With the fact that she couldn't just loop her arm around Alison's waist and give her a kiss. Because they were in a crowded ballroom. And no one was supposed to know that they were together.
Alison notice Emily's expression visually change and wasn't sure how to read it. "I told her that you and I were seeing each there again. I hope that's okay."
Emily took in the information. So that made two people here tonight that were in the know. She didn't like secrets. She didn't like tiptoeing around everyone and pretending. She had been the one pushing to keep their relationship quiet, but she was starting to resent it.
"Are you mad?" Alison asked.
She turned towards her and softened her expression. "No, not at you." It wasn't so much that she was mad at anyone, but she still felt annoyed. She wanted to be alone with her girlfriend, not in a room having to pretend that she wasn't with Alison while some other girl that the blonde used to date was walking around.
She tried to keep a level head throughout the rest of the wedding reception. She made it a point not to head to the bar, despite wanting to. She didn't need a repeat of the Fourth of July. She was really upset about her conversation with Hanna and the doubt that it had in turn brought to the surface, but for some reason her frustrations were materializing more in what Alison had told her.
She found herself glancing at the the girl that Alison pointed out periodically throughout the night. She seemed comfortable in the room and had plenty of people to talk to. Emily felt like she was isolated. She couldn't talk to Alison as much as she would have liked because people weren't supposed to know that they were together, she was actively avoiding Hanna after their talk earlier, and she really didn't know a ton of other people here. She stayed close to Spencer and Toby for the most part and watched the minutes pass.
—
Towards the end of the night, Emily was sitting at her table again with Toby. She'd been dancing earlier with her friends, but after noticing Toby quietly tip toe from the group and migrate to the table, she decided to join him so that he wasn't alone. She's always liked Toby and valued her friendship with him. She was closer to Spencer of course, because they had been friends much longer, but she and Toby had always shared a special understanding and connection.
Eventually, Spencer and Hanna started walking their way.
"You ready to head home?" Spencer asked her husband.
He sighed, relieved, "I thought you'd never ask."
"Hey!" Emily lightly swatted Toby, "I'm not bad company!
Toby lauged, "You're not, but god I'm ready to get out of this tux."
"And I can help with that," Spencer smiled at him seductively.
They all shared a laugh and hugged goodbye. Emily was left with Hanna, and the two awkwardly stood together in silence after their other friend's departure.
"Look, I'm sorry if I was harsh earlier." Hanna spoke first, in an attempt to extend the olive branch.
Emily glanced over at Hanna from the corner of her eye. She definitely didn't want to fight with her friend. She understood where the blonde was coming from, but it had definitely ruined her night. "I get it," she shrugged.
Hanna turned to face her. "What I said about you not thinking about your daughters was out of line. I'm sorry about that."
Emily nodded. That had been the most hurtful part of the conversation. Emily would do anything to ensure Lily and Grace's safety and happiness. To hear her friend suggest otherwise had been downright offensive.
She knew that Hanna's concerns about Alison had some weight, but Emily stood by her decision. "All that I can tell you is that we both really want this to work out. I think we've both changed a lot in ways that not everyone can see. We're doing our best to take it slow."
Hanna took in the information. "I believe you, Em. I'm on your team. I want this to work out, but..." The blonde hesitated for a moment and sought of her friend's eyes. "If I were you, I'd really make sure that you're taking it slow because whatever I heard in the bathroom didn't sound slow to me."
Emily sighed. They had definitely gotten a little carried away earlier and up until now she'd been planning on getting carried away later tonight. Maybe she did need to slow things down a little more.
"Sorry you had to hear all of that in the bathroom earlier," Emily apologized. It hadn't been anything too graphic, but it was still a little embarrassing.
Hanna laughed, "Yeah, don't worry, I'll only have a few nightmares about it."
"You sure 'nightmare' is the way that you'd describe the dreams that'll give you?"
"Gross," Hanna laughed again and pushed at Emily. The tension between them had dissipated and it was a relief.
Emily glanced around the room, seeking out Alison. She was in a group of people that Emily assumed were all from Beacon Heights because she didn't really recognize anyone- except the blonde girl that Alison pointed out earlier. She was standing next to the blonde and Emily wished she would back up about twenty feet. A curly haired guy in the group said something and Emily watched them react simultaneously and laugh at whatever joke he told.
"I can't believe that you didn't mention anything about that girl from the bachelorette party," Emily commented. Alison's confession had been surprising, but as Emily stewed on it throughout the night, she realized that Hanna must have known something too.
"Taylor?" Hanna raised her brows. It surprised her that Alison had actually said something to Emily about it. Maybe the two of them were actually getting better at communicating.
Emily twisted her lips at the mention of the name. Alison hadn't offered that part earlier and Emily hadn't asked. It made it more personal for some reason. "Yeah, I thought you would have spilled that to me when you got back." Her lips curled into a wry smile.
Hanna chuckled briefly. She shrugged, "Ali asked me to keep it between us and I felt like I needed to honor that. I didn't really think it would be all that scandalous considering you were dating someone."
Emily nodded. It was true. They watched the scene and Alison eventually looked over here shoulder at Emily and made eye contact.
"I think that's your cue," Hanna noted. She spotted Caleb and got ready to head his way. "Just remember what I said, Em. I'm rooting for you, but be careful."
Emily nodded and gave her a half smile. They hugged goodbye and went their separate ways. By that point, Alison was crossing the room towards her. Most of the guests had left already and the caterers were getting the room cleaned up. They could politely make their exit now if they wanted to.
"Ready to get out of here?" Alison smiled when she reached her.
"I think I've been ready all night," Emily sighed. She pushed a smile on her face to mirror Alison's though so she didn't seem like a total downer.
It didn't look like many people were paying attention. She grabbed her purse off of the table and they went ahead and made a bee line for the elevator to get to their room.
—
It didn't take long for Alison to tell that something was off. When the elevator doors closed, she'd reached for Emily's hand immediately and given her a big smile. She'd been looking forward to going back to her room together all day and was excited for the time to finally be here. She squeezed the other girl's hand in anticipation.
Emily had looked down at her with a small smile, but Alison could see that it was somewhat forced. She knew Emily's expressions almost better than she knew her own and this smile didn't even come close to reaching her eyes.
Neither of them said anything in the elevator or during the walk to the room once they'd gotten to the correct floor and Alison felt the same worry from earlier seeping back up.
She opened the door with her key card and let Emily inside. It was a nice hotel and Mona had gotten them upgraded and spacious rooms. She had a king sized bed with silky sheets that Alison had immediately imagined her and Emily rolling around in when she saw it for the first time yesterday. Now, she wasn't so sure what the night had in store. She sat down in a chair, still in her gown, and studied Emily. The brunette was standing awkwardly inside the doorway, just looking around the room.
Alison tried to make conversation. "I wish we got to say goodnight to the girls... Did your Mom not call?"
Emily walked inside of the room a few steps. "She did... I told them goodnight from both of us."
"Why didn't you come get me?" Alison frowned.
Part of it was that Emily had been trying to keep her distance. The back to back conversations with Hanna and Alison had her head moving in too many directions and she was nervous that she would do or say the wrong thing if she spent anymore alone time with Alison at the reception before she calmed down.
The other issue was that at the time that Pam had called, Alison was with several people that Emily didn't recognize, and she didn't want to just walk up to the group. She'd spent time tonight realizing that there was a whole two years that had gone by where Alison had lived a different life that hadn't included Emily and it made her feel sad.
"You were... occupied." Emily shrugged.
"Not so much so that I wouldn't have wanted to say goodnight to them." Alison pushed her brows together in frustration.
"Okay, I'm sorry," Emily exhaled. She was so let down with how the night had played out. When she and Alison had snuck away earlier, her mood was at an all-time high. She wished that she could find a way to put everything else aside and salvage the night.
"So did you lie earlier... when you said you weren't mad at me?" Alison asked, breaking Emily's train of thought.
"No..." Emily shook her head, "I'm not mad at you."
"Well, what's going on then? Should I not have said anything about Taylor being here?" She thought that she was doing the right thing by being honest, but maybe it had been a bad idea. Emily's mood hadn't been the same since that conversation.
"That's not it. I mean it was a little weird, but I'm glad you told me."
Alison walked over to where Emily was standing. She reached for her arm and pulled her down to sit with her on the bed. She looked into her eyes. Emily's dark eyes usually were full of passion when they were together, but right now she just looked sad. "What is it then? Because something changed between the bathroom and now."
"Well… I found out that Hanna was in the bathroom at the same time that we were..."
Alison tilted her head, "I thought it was empty?"
"Yeah," Emily rubbed start the back of her neck, "apparently not."
"Well that's a little embarrassing." Alison raised her brows, and gave a little laugh. It wasn't ideal, but there were plenty of other people who it would have been worse to have heard them get hot and heavy together. At least Hanna was their friend. She peered at Emily. She didn't seem amused.
"I told her that it wasn't just a random thing... that we're seeing each other. She kind of let me have it."
"What?" Alison furrowed her brows.
Emily shrugged, "You know Hanna… she'll always let you know what she thinks. Kind of wish she held back a little though."
Alison frowned at the comment. She felt like she and Hanna were fine. Did the other blonde really still have issues with her? "Well what did she say?" She felt some attitude slipping into her voice, as she started to feel defensive of Emily, herself, and their relationship in general.
"She just doesn't think it's a good idea for us to get involved again." Emily didn't really want to go into the details out of protection for Alison's feelings. "She's worried about it not working out."
"Well it's not her problem," Alison huffed.
"I know," Emily nodded, "but I think it was hard on all of our friends when it didn't work out before. She also was worried about Lily and Grace." She felt her shoulders slump as she relayed the information. She was trying so hard to do the right thing for herself and everyone else and it was getting exhausting.
"I get it… but she doesn't really get a say, Em. It's our life," Alison shook her head.
Emily frowned. Alison was right, but that didn't mean that Hanna was totally wrong either. "We should probably just make sure we're taking it slow."
Alison blinked. "We are," she stressed. Sure it had only been two months, but they had been taking it as slow as they could. What were they supposed to do to slow it down further?
Emily stayed quiet for a minute. She stared down at her lap. They were taking it slow, but what if something happened and derailed them? What if they slept together only to get into a disagreement the next week. What if Lily or Grace caught them kissing in the kitchen? There were so many things that could make this go south. She felt so pressured to get it right, for things to be perfect this time.
Alison could tell that Emily was fighting herself. They had come a long way and Alison was willing to fight, but she couldn't if Emily wasn't all in with her. She put two fingers under Emily's chin and tilted her head back so that the brunette could meet her eyes. She spoke slowly and seriously, needing Emily to hear her, to understand everything that she was saying very clearly. "Look, Em, if you start looking for problems, trust me, you're going to find them. They're there. They'e in places that we can't see or that we don't even know about yet. But I think that we're going to be ready for them when they come. I think we're at a place where we can deal with them, but we have to do it together."
Emily stared back at her. Alison could see it. Her expression was changing. She believed the words that Alison had spoken to her. It was okay for Emily to be nervous or insecure, Alison would pull her out of it. That's what couples did.
Emily gave her a little smile. Her heart started beating in her chest. Could they really make it through anything? "How do you know for sure?"
Alison mirrored her smile, dimples starting to form on her cheeks. "Because I used to be afraid of our imperfections but," she shook her head lightly, "I'm not afraid anymore. I know who I am, and I know who you are. I love you. I love our family. And I'm not willing to lose that ever again. I need you to trust me."
Emily had never heard Alison sound so sure of anything. It made her believe. She wanted to believe in her. She wanted to trust her. She reached for the blonde's hand an squeezed it. She leaned in and kissed her, long and tender. When she pulled back she rested her forehead against the other girl's.
"I love you too," she whispered.
Alison leaned back in for another kiss, smiling uncontrollably against the other girl's lips. She would never get tired of hearing Emily say that she loved her. She leaned back onto the bed, taking the other girl with her. They spent the next few minutes just enjoying the feel of one another. Alison ran her hands down Emily's bare skin and along her silky black dress. She relished in the feeling. No one had ever made her feel more love than this woman. She knew that just telling her that she believed in them wasn't enough. She'd have to keep showing Emily every single day and would have to keep letting the trust build.
For Emily though, Alison's words had been enough to calm her down for now. She hated how easy it was for her to slip into a pattern of destructive thinking. She believed in them too. She wasn't sure why she'd let herself get so down tonight, but she was thankful that she had Alison to pull her out of it. Three years ago, this night would have ended in a major fight, but Alison was patient and confident when Emily needed her to be. She could feel that they'd really come a long way.
Emily moved to deepen the kiss, as her hands tangled in Alison's now messy blonde curls. She felt Alison's tongue dart out and dance together with hers. She felt like she was melting. It was the best feeling. Of all the people that she'd ever been with, no one made her feel as good as Alison did just by doing the most simple things.
She reached around, and toyed with the zipper of the gown that she'd unzipped earlier that evening. There had been too much drama to make tonight the night, but she still wanted more of the other girl. She made a conscious effort not to get to wrapped up. She tried not to let herself get too revved up when she heard Alison whine in her mouth. Tried not to get too hot when she felt the blonde's fully exposed back under her finger tips. Being with Alison felt so right, but she was willing to keep things slow and steady if it meant that the relationship would last. Alison eventually pulled back and looked at her. Her pupils were slightly blown and her lips were kissed swollen. She looked beautiful.
Emily noted that she was looking at her expectantly, letting the brunette make the call for what happened next. "Still taking it slow." She leaned in for another kiss.
Alison let out a shaky breath against her mouth. She met her eyes again, "Soon though?"
"Very soon," Emily smiled.
They spent the rest of the night curled up together, talking, kissing, and cuddling. It wound up a little more PG than either of them had originally had in mind, but neither were upset about the outcome. They were spending time together, and that was what was most important.
—
The next morning, Emily was up early to start making her way back home. She was going to take an Uber back to Spencer's street where she had left her car and then drive back to Rosewood to get the girls from her Mom. Luckily, they had thought ahead and Alison had packed an outfit for Emily in her bag so that she didn't have to leave the hotel in last night's dress. That wouldn't have been a great look.
They kissed several times goodbye, both not wanting their time together to end. Sure, they'd see each other in a few days, but it wouldn't be the same. They'd have their daughters back around and have to be more clandestine. They'd talked the previous night about making a plan to tell their friends what was going on. Now that Hanna knew, it wasn't really fair to ask her to keep it a secret. They figured with Thanksgiving coming up in a few weeks, they would have plenty of chances to tell Spencer and Aria.
Eventually, Emily made it downstairs to the lobby. She stood close to the doors as she checked the app to watch her driver's progress.
She overheard a conversation from the front desk. "Your driver should be around in the next few minutes, Ms. Hotchkiss. We'll go ahead and bring your bags down for you."
"Thank you," Emily heard the guest say. She turned around out of curiosity and almost did a double-take. That was definitely Taylor, the girl that Alison had pointed out last night. The girl turned around and Emily accidentally made eye contact with her. She tried to play it off, but she felt her eyes widen slightly before she turned her body awkwardly. She looked down at her phone hoping that her Uber wasn't far.
She heard footsteps approaching and inwardly cringed. It was too early for this. She hoped that the girl would just walk past her and go about her business.
"Hey, Emily, right?" No such luck.
Emily turned around, not sure what kind of face to make. She knew whatever she looked like was a combination of surprised, uncomfortable, and downright awkward. "Yeah… hi."
The girl smiled back at her. Emily couldn't help but notice her eyes. They were blue, like Alison's, but probably two shades darker. Her smile didn't have dimples, but the grin had a mix of a smirk in it. It was one that she'd seen on Alison plenty of times. It was the smile she gave while she was thinking about her next move. Their similarities nearly shocked Emily and the other girl's presence made her feel uneasy.
"Taylor, Hotchkiss," she nodded to introduce herself. "I'm friends with Mona and Ali. I've heard a lot about you."
Interesting, Emily thought. "Yeah, Ali told me who you are."
She didn't want to play any games. She looked down at her phone again, somewhat to brush this girl off and shutdown the conversation, but also because where the hell was this driver? Was he lost or something? Because this was just her luck.
Taylor continued, "And she told me that you two are trying to work things out."
"We are," Emily met her gaze, and raised her brows as if to say 'make sure you stay the hell away from my girl'.
Taylor nodded and smiled, "Listen, you don't need to worry about me trying to like get her back or anything."
"Don't I?" Emily challenged.
"You don't," Taylor shook her head. "Finding out that she was trying to work things out with you was probably the least surprising things she's ever told me."
Emily nodded, taking in the information.
"Plus, I didn't say anything to her, but I'm kind of seeing someone too."
"So why are you over here then?" Emily wasn't trying to have an attitude, but she couldn't quite figure out the angle here.
"To tell you to take care of her I guess," Taylor shrugged. "I care about her, but it wasn't like I couldn't see that she missed you."
Emily nodded. She'd missed Alison too during that time. So much.
"I mean, with her and I it worked because she trusted me when I gave her literally no reason to. Without her, I don't really know where I'd be right now," she smiled to herself. "I saw the way that you were looking at me last night, and I wanted to make sure that you knew I'm not some kind of threat. I want her to be happy and for her it was always you."
"Thank you," Emily nodded with her first genuine smile. It was always Alison for her too. She wished that that hadn't had to take such a hard left to realize it.
"Safe travels back," Taylor flocked her brows as a black tow car pulled up outside. She walked in the direction of it and was met halfway by a man in a black suit and driving hat. He took her bags and opened the door for her.
Geez, Emily thought, Ali could have mentioned that this girl was clearly loaded.
She thought about what Taylor had said about trust. That Alison's willingness to put her blind trust in her had ultimately been what made them work. She hadn't done that the last time that she and Alison had been together before. She tried, but ultimately she couldn't let go of the past and it prevented her from trusting the woman who became her wife. She couldn't do that this time. Alison had said last night that for them to work, she needed Emily to trust her.
Emily vowed to herself as she stood in the hotel lobby that morning not to just trust Alison, but to trust herself. To trust their relationship. If she could do that, nothing could come between them. She hoped that she could stick to that promise this time.
—
A/N- Giant exhale. Both for Emily's sake for not blowing things up and for my own because that's the longest chapter I've ever edited at one time. Hope you see the progress. I'm proud of the girls! I also can't help but crack up when I picture what face Hanna must have been making when she realized that Emily and Ali were hooking up in the bathroom while she was there. Yikes. We'll get more of Hanna and the others.
Thanks for the patience while I worked on getting this one out. The feedback has been awesome and I can't wait to hear what you think. As always. Thanks for reading. Stay safe and take care of yourselves. I'm sure we already know this, but with everything going on right now in the US, go out of your way to be kind to others. It will make everyone's day just a little bit better. Take care!